Patrice v. Murphy, 43 F. Supp. 2d 1156 (9^th Cir. (W.D. Wa (Seattle) 1999)

The court held that an arrest is not a service, program or activity and therefore not covered by the ADA.  Plaintiff, a deaf arrestee, sought injunctive and declaratory relief alleging violations of Title II of the ADA and state discrimination statute, for failure of the arresting officers to provide a sign language interpreter at the time of her arrest.  Police were summoned to the plaintiff’s home on a claim of domestic violence, which is where the arrest took place.  Defendant’s motion for summary judgment was granted:  No violation of the ADA occurred because an arrest is not considered a service, program or activity; plaintiff could read and write well and thus accommodation was provided through the use of written materials.   It was further held plaintiff’s home is not considered a place of public accommodation and therefore there was no violation of state statute.  The court noted that a claim may exist where an assertion is made that an arrest was due to one’s disability.  In this case, the court held that plaintiff was arrested for probable cause and not because of her disability.